We have been having lots of fun over the last couple of weekends doing Christmasy things. After all, this is baby's first Christmas! Everything is new for her, so everything is double the fun. A couple of weekends ago we spent an evening at the Toronto Distillery District Christmas Market. This is always so special, wandering around with a hot chocolate in hand, looking at all the shops and enjoying the Christmas atmosphere. Elara even had a great time (after a brief meltdown due to hunger at the beginning). We ended up stopping to feed her (and ourselves) at the Mill Street Beer Hall. Not the most child friendly spot, but Elara won everyone over that walked by, and equally she loved the attention. And we got to have a beer! Win win for everyone!

This past weekend we cut down our Christmas tree. We had a lovely afternoon with some good friends looking for the perfect tree (and getting some Christmas photos in as well). We ended up picking a small tree this year, as Elara is into everything, and placing it up on the coffee table. It might deter her a little more then if it was on the floor. We shall see! Can't wait to keep this tradition going each year as Elara gets older. Lots of fun!

It was my birthday this past weekend, and I am now in my 32nd year of being alive! Even though I sometimes have to think really hard about what my age actually is, I still enjoy having birthdays. It's the one day of year to celebrate being you. So here are the best things that happened in the last year.

1. Baby Elara! (This is by far the most amazing thing that happened this past year)
2. Exploring Our Area (We did so much more exploring this year, as last year I was pregnant and didn't have as much energy)
3. Creating New Family Traditions (We have started doing a few things around the holidays, like at Thanksgiving and Christmas, which I think will continue as our family gets older)
4. Our House is Now a Home (We have been here almost 2 years now, and with all our projects, our house is starting to really feel like ours)
5. Bonding with Friends (Having a baby has brought me a lot closer to friends who also have young kids. It's great to be able to share in the good and not so good times)

 Happy Halloween! It's Elara's first Halloween this year, and our second year of giving out candy and decorating the house. We even got to pick our own pumpkin this year. Lots of festive fun!

​We decided to make Elara the Queen of Hearts for Halloween. It actually all started as a joke, as she has a shirt with a collar that wouldn't stay down (as seen in the photo below). I thought it looked like an Elizabethan queenly collar, and from there we thought she would make a good Queen of Hearts. We already had a dress with hearts all over it, all we needed was accessories to make the costume complete! She makes a pretty cute queen, and she definitely rules this house with an iron fist. 

I hope you have lots of candy and Halloween fun this weekend! 

 This past weekend we visited the Evergreen Brick Works. If you have never been it's definitely a neat place to check out. There are great paths to go for hike, and lots of fun little gardens to explore, as well as a store and coffee shop. And every weekend there are a ton of activities. While we were there we browsed through the weekly farmers market and had some lunch sitting out in the beautiful sun by the pond. There was also an Etsy market going on this weekend that was fun to wander around. I even picked up a cute fox bib for the baby. It was a super fun afternoon out!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you had a great long weekend. We had a lot of fun on Sunday as we visited a pumpkin patch, wandered through a corn maze, went on a tracker ride, and picked our own pumpkin. Then in the evening we had some good friends over for Thanksgiving dinner.  Elara had a great first Thanksgiving! 

We decided to spend the long weekend in Ottawa visiting family and friends. We saw so many people, most of whom had not yet met Elara. Practically every meal was spent with someone new. It was certainly busy, but fun too. Elara got lots of new toys to play with, like in the photo above. She was greeted with a play mat at her grandparents place. Elara was a good sport through all the excitement, except for the long trip home. There was lots of crying, and it was definitely a test of motherhood listening to heartbreaking sobs but being powerless to do anything about it. However, we made it! I hope everyone had a great Labour Day weekend!

We spent this beautiful weekend exploring new parks in our area. Each morning we would walk a distance, and then the next day drive to where we left off and continue from there. So much fun, I can't believe how many wonderful places there are around us. We have been following the Waterfront Trail. Starting from our public beach, Rouge Beach, and heading east. It has been lots of fun, and we plan to keep going each weekend! 

At home, we still can't decide on the bathroom paint colour. It's hard to match the pinks. So in the meantime we actually got back to working the shelves in the living room. I'm so excited to get this project going again! We have been talking about it for ages, and now it's happening. It's going to take awhile, but I think they will be amazing once complete. 

Somebody really cute is three months old today! I can't believe how fast the time has gone, whereas my husband feels like the time has gone slow. But we both agree that life is much better with her around. She is lots of fun, smiling and cooing so much more, it's quite exciting. Can't wait to see what the next three months bring!

I have decided to create a journal of memories as my daughter grows up. However, instead of just writing my memories down I am writing in the style of letters addressed to Elara. Then one day I hope to give it to her as a gift. Maybe when she is adult or even when she is about to have her own child. She will be able to see her life through my eyes as a person and not just as a mother. So much fun to think what the future may hold, and then to look back on all these memories. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, and (in Canada) are enjoying Boxing Day. This was Jeff and I's first Christmas in our house. We are starting our own traditions, especially with a little one on the way. It's hard to say goodbye to our childhood traditions, but it's also exciting to start our own with our new family. Merry Christmas to you, and a very happy new year!